EXHIBITION
ʻAI PŌHAKU, STONE EATERS
January 22 – March 26, 2023
The Art Gallery, University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa (UHM), Art Building
The Art Gallery at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa is proud to present ʻAi Pōhaku, Stone Eaters, on view from January 22 through March 26. This is the first and largest iteration of the multi-site exhibition of Kānaka ʻŌiwi artists, portions of which can also be seen throughout spring and summer 2023 at other college and university venues on Oʻahu, including Koa Gallery, Kapiʻolani Community College; Gallery ʻIolani, Windward Community College; East-West Center Gallery; and Hōʻikeākea Gallery, Leeward Community College. This exhibition gathers new commissions, works-in-progress, and existing artworks by an intergenerational group of nearly 40 poets, painters, carvers, weavers, filmmakers, photographers, and musicians to help tell a story of Native Hawaiian contemporary art that began during the archipelago-wide cultural reawakening of the 1970’s. Seeds of resistance planted following the overthrow of the Hawaiian monarchy continue to bear fruit.
The curators write:
"This exhibition affirms our long-standing acts of creative resistance and persistence...Despite the abundance of our artistic expressions, it has been more than twenty years since a large-scale exhibition of Kanaka ʻŌiwi art was presented within the University of Hawaiʻi (UH) System. Aware of its context, ʻAi Pōhaku, Stone Eaters addresses the exclusion of Kānaka worldviews from academia, specifically within the UH Mānoa Department of Art and Art History, and an overall lack of institutional support for Kānaka art across the Islands. Beyond the present educational environment, systemic racism and anti-Hawaiian stances underlie many of the inequities and associated challenges that we face daily. By advocating for Kānaka artists and culture bearers, this exhibition offers audiences an opportunity to form meaningful connections to our diverse work while ensuring that our stories of art are sustained in our ancestral homelands and abroad.
We are grateful to do this collaborative work and are indebted to the artists, curators, and educators who have struggled to carve paths for us to follow. May we continue to share stories of Kanaka ʻŌiwi creative resistance, persistence, and the inevitability of our nationhood."
Artist List
Bernice Akamine, Maile Andrade, Pam Barton, Leimomi Lani, Sean Kekamakupaʻaikapono Kaʻonohiokalani Lee Loy Browne, Kahi Ching, Kaili Chun, Kauʻi Chun, Herman Piʻikea Clark, April Drexel, Solomon Robert Nui Enos, Bob Freitas, Puni Jackson, ʻĪmaikalani Kalāhele, Kapulani Landgraf, Nanea Lum, Charlton Kūpaʻa Hee, Ipō and Kūnani Nihipali, Charlie Sinclair, Keith Tallett, Cory Kamehanaokalā Holt Taum, Maikaʻi Tubbs, and Kunane Wooton.
Organization
This exhibition was curated by Drew Kahuʻāina Broderick, Noelle M. K. Y. Kahanu, and Josh Tengan.
Opening
There will be an opening Sunday, January 22, from 2 – 4 p.m.
Public Programming
There will be weekly tours at 1 pm on Fridays and Sundays.
Artist discussions will be held 2 pm on Sundays.
All programming is free and open to the public without reservation and will run throughout the exhibition.
Website
A website with the most current information about the multi-venue ʻAi Pōhaku, Stone Eaters exhibition can be found here.
Sponsors
The Art Gallery is supported by the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa’s Department of Art + Art History and College of Arts, Languages & Letters; the Halekulani Hotel– Hospitality Sponsor for the Arts at UH Mānoa, the Cooke Foundation, the Beverly Willis Foundation, the Michael J. Marks Foundation; and anonymous donors. This exhibition is made possible through the generous support of Puʻuhonua Society, Hawaiʻi State Foundation on Culture and the Arts, Native Arts and Cultures Foundation, Institute of Museum and Library Services, and Independent Curators International.
THE ART GALLERY is located at 2535 McCarthy Mall, Rm 141, Honolulu, HI 96822.
Gallery hours and admission
Wednesday – Sunday 12 – 4 p.m.
Closed Mondays, Tuesdays, spring break (March 15-19), and state holidays.
Free admission. Donations are appreciated.
Parking fees may apply during weekdays. Parking is free on Sundays
For more information please contact Sheika Alghezawi at 808.956.8364 and gallery@hawaii.edu